Eternal Love – across 1000 years
by jmwilshaw1205
Summary: The world is in danger. Lucy Heartfilia, the Dragon Summoner, is the only one who can save it. A mysterious boy from the past wonders into her life, changing her perspective, and everyone else, 360 degrees. Can they both save the world before it's too late? What awaits them throughout at the end of this journey?
1. Chapter 1 - Prologue -

The sun was starting to set. The ruins of the once great city of Symphonia, was dimming into darkness. On the outskirts of the ruined city, a group of people was sitting down, surrounding a fire. This was their final destination; they came through many hardships and dangerous challenges to reach the city. However, they did not look happy; on the contrary, they had a look of pain on their faces, as though something terrible was going to happen.

One member of the group stood up, and walked towards the hill nearby. He stopped in front of a girl; he put his hand on her shoulder, as though he was trying to comfort her. She didn't look at his face, but held his hand, feeling better.

He walked up the hill, and stood looking at the ruined city. The surroundings started to glow; the magic fireflies were flying around, making the ruined city look more mysterious. The man looked at the city in a mixed face; happiness, sadness, unable to think clearly.

This was his home. Symphonia.

He looked on for what he felt like was hours. He opened his mouth, and started talking to the rest of the group.

"This might be the last time we all talk here. So I want to let everything out now. What I saw, what I experienced, what I felt"

"We saw everything, Natsu" called Gray from below. "Why do you want to talk about all of it now?"

Natsu looked back below. "Because I think it's important"

Gray grumbled, but said no more. Everyone else nodded at what Natsu said; they wanted to prolong this as long as possible. The girl Natsu put his hand on her shoulder, nodded also. Everyone was staring at her; they knew what she wants to do in her life, her dreams and wishes. But they also know what lies ahead of her.

Lucy Heartfilia. The Dragon Summoner. The last hope of this world.

Natsu started talking.

"It was months ago, before I ended up in this world…."


	2. Chapter 2 - The Beginning of the Journey

- Several months ago -

It was like any day in Symphonia. Everyone living in the city was busy living their own lives, not caring about anyone else other than himself or herself. As the sun started to set, the city's lights started to lighten up the city. "The City that Never Sleeps", the people called Symphonia.

On the outskirts of the city, near the bay, Natsu Dragneel was ready to walk out of his house. He was getting ready for the magic games against Symphonia Busters. It was the city derby in the magic games; Symphonia Phoenix vs Symphonia Busters. The winner wins the magic games league; this was the most important game of the games' recent history.

And who is the most important player on Phoenix? The one and only Fire Dragon slayer, Natsu Dragneel!

Natsu was getting his regular clothes on. He was smiling; he knew the girls in the stadium liked it when he left his chest visible. He trained for many days for this match, he was ready for them.

He stepped outside, and already a horde of Phoenix supporters were waiting for him to come out.

"There he is!"

"The one and only Dragneel!"

"Do it Natsu! Do it for Phoenix!"

"Oh my god! Dragneel-sama!"

Natsu was laughing. He always had fans waiting for him outside so they can cheer him on before the matches, but there were more people outside today.

"Hey guys! Cheer us on for tonight's game!"

The crowd roared. Natsu felt proud and happy he was getting the approval of the fans. He only joined the team two years ago; when he joined them everyone thought he was going to be a flop. Now, no one dares say that he is a failure. Natsu was determined to leave his name in the team's history.

"Can you sign this for us please?"

"Yeah sure!"

Natsu was busy signing autographs to his fans. He was happy that people were accepting him. Every time he signed autographs, he looked back at his childhood.

_Why can't you follow the simplest orders?!_

_Why can't you do this?!_

_You're hopeless, I tell you, HOPELESS!_

_You'll never be accepted by anyone!_

"Dragneel?"

Natsu realized he was daydreaming while signing an autograph. He shook his head.

"Sorry, was daydreaming" he finished signing the autograph and gave it to the fan. "Here you go"

"Thank you!" said the fan. She was squealing. "Um, Dragneel?"

"Yes?"

"I was going to ask, when the match finishes, do you want to meet up?"

Natsu stared at the fan. She looked quite pretty. He thought about it.

"You can't" said a voice behind him.

"What?" Natsu said, looking back.

A young girl was standing there. She looked around 13 or 14, wearing a blue one piece and having blue hair. She had it really long, so she had it in a twin tail.

Natsu knew her. She has been around him his whole life, popping up when something happens.

"What you do mean?"

"You can't tonight. You're going to be busy"

"Am I?"

"Yes"

Natsu looked at her. She smiled back. Natsu nodded, and looked back at the fan. "Sorry, I can't tonight"

The fan looked sad. "Ok, sorry I asked"

"No problem" Natsu leaned in to whisper in her ear. "Maybe next time"

The girl's face went bright red, and squealed. She nodded many times, and ran off to her friends. Chuckling, Natsu looked back to ask the young gril why he was going to be busy.

She was not there.

Natsu looked around, but she was nowhere to be seen. Looking slightly confused, Natsu focused on the upcoming match, and started to run towards the stadium.

"Ill meet you guys at the stadium!" shouted Natsu. "Cheer for us!"

The crowd roared, and started to chant Natsu's name. Laughing, Natsu continued running to the stadium.

Within a visible distance, a man was sitting down, leaning on a mast of one of the boats stationed in the harbor. He was holding a sake bottle, drinking from it. he looked like he was in his 30's.

"Is he ready?"

"I don't know" the girl from earlier appeared in front of him. "I told him he will be busy"

"That's it?" the man chuckled. "You could have given him more information"

"What's the point?" the girl chuckled back. "He's not a child anymore, Gildarts. He'll be ready whether he likes it or not"

"That's true" Gildarts laughed. "Let's hope he doesn't get crushed first, Wendy"

Gildarts looked at the open sea. On the horizon, a bulge started to form. It was slowly heading towards the city.

"There's no turning back" Gildarts said to Wendy while the bulge was continuing to head towards Symphonia. "He'll have to be ready for this. It's going to change his life forever"


	3. Chapter 3 - A Rude Awakening

Chapter 3: A Rude Awakening

"Ladies and Gentlemen!" The speaker spoke loudly. "Welcome to the final match of the Magic Games League!"

The crowd in the stadium roared. The roar from the crowd was so loud; it shook the stadium as though an earthquake hit the city.

"The final games match, between the best of the best! The winner takes all! There has never been a bigger match than this! And now, lets introduce the two teams!"

"On the red corner, the current champions, the best of the best! Symphonia Busters!"

There was a huge roar from the left side of the stadium; however, the boos were ringing around them.

"On the blue corner, the challengers, the team that never gives up, the team that rises from the dead! Symphonia Phoenix!"

The stadium shook once again. It was clear who was the more liked team.

"Lets get ready to RUMBLE!" the speaker roared, and the roars from the supporters followed. Both teams came out the field; 7 vs 7, all out battle. The last mage from both teams standing wins.

"Everyone, on your mark—"

Natsu was ready to get onto the field. Fire was forming on his fists.

"Get set—"

All 14 mages were ready to attack.

"FIGHT!"

The gong went off, and every mage let out their attacks.

Natsu managed to dodge several attacks, and headed towards the enemy lines. There was a mage in front of him; Gienma, the oldest mage on Symphonia Busters.

"So you're going to fight against me, boy?! Ill teach you a few manners!" Gienma shouted at Natsu, attacking him with ground magic.

Natsu dodged it easily, and the by the time Gienma can react, Natsu was in his blind spot.

"Shi-"

"Language, old man" Natsu hissed.

"Fire Dragon's Roar!"

Natsu's attack his Gienma full on. Gienma flew through the battlefield, and crashed into the wall, knocked out.

"And there goes Gienma!" screamed the commentator. "Seems like his old age caught up with him! One down for the Busters, point given to Phoenix by Natsu Dragneel!"

The crowd roared of approval. Natsu looked at the crowd and smiled. He continued to look for other opponents to fight in the field.

**-Out in the docks-**

The sphere was getting nearer and nearer towards the city of Symphonia. It had already swallowed a couple of ships out in the open. But nobody was paying attention to it; everyone was focused on the match between Busters and Phoenix.

At the docks, Gildarts was staring at the bulge. He lifted his sake bottle to the bulge, as though to say "hello". He looked down at Wendy, "Get Natsu. We need to get him out of there"

Wendy nodded and with a spin, disappeared. Gildarts looked onto the sphere, murmuring, "Here we go"

**-Back in the stadium, 10 minutes later-**

The battle was drawing to a close. The power between the two teams was about the same; however, Phoenix was edging it by an inch. Busters only had three guys left on their team, while Phoenix had four. Natsu was one of them.

"Ok, this is it!" shouted Natsu. He used his jump ability to jump up high in the air, to leash his final attack. The crowds were on their feet; they were looking forward to Natsu unleashing his final attack.

"Dragon Slayer Technique—"

"No!" screamed a voice. Natsu stopped his attack mid-air, looking around where the voice came from.

"Here" and with that, Wendy appeared in front of him in mid-air.

"You again? What is it this time?! I'm about to unleash my final—"

"Look over there!" Wendy pointed towards the sea.

Natsu looked towards the docks while still in the air, and was shocked at what he saw. A big sphere was floating in air, covered in seawater, sucking everything in its way.

"What the hell?! What is that?!" Natsu screamed.

The sphere started to form circles on the surface. It looked as though something was coming out.

BANG.

And with a bang, a series of attacks swept through the city, destroying everything in its path. The attacks hit the stadium with a bang.

"Woah! Its going to kill us!" screamed Natsu.

"Sky Dragon's Wall!"

A wall of wind and air covered the two, nullifying the attack from the bulge. The two mages were still in the air.

"What the?! Since when were you able to do that?!" shouted Natsu.

"I was always able to do it, I just never showed it in front of you" smiled Wendy.

The two landed onto the ground. The stadium was completely destroyed, leaving large amounts of bodies on the ground. Those who were still alive were running around in panic.

Natsu looked around, trembling. Not just a minute ago, these people were all alive, waiting to see his final attack and see his team win the league. He felt a lump in his throat, seeing all the destruction.

"Quickly, we need to get to where Gildarts is"

"Gildarts?! That old git is ivolved in this too?!" Natsu said angrily. He was not very fond of his mentor and guardian, even though deep down inside he was grateful Gildarts was there for him.

"No point grumbling about him now, lets go" said Wendy, leading the way. Grumbling, Natsu followed.

**-A couple of minutes later-**

Natsu and Wendy finally arrived at where Gildarts was. Natsu shouted out loud.

"Gildarts! What the hell is going on?!"

Gildarts didn't say anything. Instead, he looked upon the sphere. The bulge was already inside the outskirts of the city.

"_We_ call it Endless"

"Endless?" asked Natsu.

Natsu looked upon the sphere. Things were falling out of it, turning into creatures when hitting the ground. They were causing havoc onto the city.

"Those bastards!" shouted Natsu. Fire started to form around his fists. "They're going to pay!"

Gildarts looked on at Natsu. He glanced at Wendy; she nodded. Gildarts took something out from his pocket and threw it at Natsu.

"Natsu, catch!"

"What the?! What is this?!"

It was a glove, which was an arm long. It had armour plates on the sides, and had a fire symbol on the fist.

"It was Igneel's"

"It was dad's?!" Natsu said. The creatures were coming towards the three mages.

"Try using it" said Gildarts.

Natsu put the glove on his right arm. He felt a sudden surge of power. He looked upon the creatures, and attacked.

"Fire Dragon's Iron Fist!"

The attack blasted all creatures away in front of him. The creatures that were left were burnt alive, turning into ashes.

Gildarts whistled. "Not bad for a first timer, impressive. Igneel taught you well"

"Shut up! Why did you have dad's glove in the first place?!"

"It doesn't matter" Gildarts waved away. "We need to stop the destruction. We need to get to Endless. Wendy?"

Wendy nodded. "I'm ready"

"Ok, let's go" said Gildarts, and he started to run towards the bulge. Wendy followed.

"Oi! Wait! You haven't explained anything!" shouted Natsu, trailing after them.

**-At the edge of the city-**

The three mages managed to get near the sphere, or Endless. They had to destroy many creatures that were in their way. Natsu was panting; he was not used to be using this much magic. Gildarts and Wendy, however, hadn't even broken a sweat.

"Jesus…. How are you two still standing?" Natsu panted.

The sphere started to glow. Gildarts and Wendy were ready to attack.

"Ok, Natsu, throw everything you got at it"

"What? But I have no magic left!"

"Just do it!" shouted Gildarts.

Natsu shuddered. Gildarts rarely shouts at him. Standing up, he gathered all of his remaining magic into his right arm.

"NOW!" shouted Gildarts.

"CRUSH!"

"SKY DRAGON'S ROAR!"

"SECRET DRAGON TECHNIQUE: CRIMSON LOTUS: EXPLODING FLAMING BLADE!"

The three attacks combined and hit the sphere. Endless let out a scream. The scream was so loud, it was creating sonic booms around the surroundings.

The three mages managed to stand their ground; Wendy was able to create a wall of wind and air just in time to shield them from the attack.

"Is nothing… going to stop this thing?!" screamed Natsu.

"No" said Gildarts. "But look"

The sphere started to float higher in the air. It was glowing and pulsing, taking everything in the surroundings with it. The three mages started to float into the air.

"What the?! Wendy, put us down!" shouted Natsu.

"I can't" said Wendy. "It's too strong"

Wendy looked at Gildarts. He nodded. She nodded back, and went inside Endless.

"WENDY!" screamed Natsu.

Gildarts grabbed Natsu on the shirt. Natsu was holding onto Gildarts for dear life.

"Gildarts! Help!" screamed Natsu.

Gildarts didn't say anything. He looked up at the sphere, questioning it.

"You ok with this?"

"GILDARTS!" screamed Natsu.

Gildarts looked down at Natsu. "Listen up, Natsu. Things are going to change, for the better or the worse. You have to be ready for it. You have to be ready for everything that will happen to you"

"Wha…what?!" said Natsu.

Gildarts was getting sucked into the sphere. A bright light covered the two mages. It was so bright, Natsu had to squint his eyes.

"This is your story! Do not look away! Fight!" screamed Gildarts.

Everything went to darkenss. Natsu lost consciousness, floating in air.


	4. Chapter 4 - Waking up to Reality

Chapter 4: Waking up to Reality

Natsu couldn't tell how long he was floating in the air. Everything was messed up; he couldn't tell the time. It felt as though he has been there for eternity.

"Oi! OI! You ok?! Wake up!"

"Da…. Dad?" said Natsu. He opened his eyes. He felt like he was in a dream like state; he looked around. There was nothing there, only open space.

There was a landing on the bottom, where a man was standing. He looked awfully familiar…

Natsu edged towards the figure in the middle. Slowly but surely he was getting closer.

A few minutes passed. He was on the platform, the figure within touching distance. Natsu reached out for the figure.

Suddenly, a bright light engulfed Natsu. He covered his eyes. He couldn't see anything. He was losing consciousness again. Before he passed out, he heard this:

"Welcome to reality, my son"

**-Some time later-**

Natsu was floating in the sea. He opened his eyes; the sun was shining onto him, even though the light was getting cut off from the clouds.

He made sure he was able to float in the water properly; he was never good with water, but training with the team for the Grand Magic League made him able to keep his balance and use his magic in water.

He balanced himself in the water; he looked around to see if anyone was around. But there was no-one there; he was in a ruin. Blocks of buildings were destroyed, and some of the structures were sank below in the water.

"Gildarts! Wendy!" Natsu shouted, but no-one answered him.

But further along the line, he could see a beach. Natsu started swimming towards it.

A few minutes later, he saw people on the beach. Curious, he hid himself and observed what they were doing.

They were talking in a strange language. Natsu couldn't understand them, but could tell they were heated up on something.

" $#EvDEE #!"

" $ $%%!"

Natsu got up and presented himself in front of them.

"Hey guys! What you guys so heated up about?"

The people on the beach were startled by Natsu's sudden appearance. They pulled out their guns and pointed it at the Fire Dragon Slayer.

"Woah, put those down guys!"

" #%%##!"

"What? I don't understand you!"

"sFJAIREW!"

Suddenly, a huge monster appeared out of nowhere, and landed on the beach. The people with guns started shooting the monster, but were giving no damage; the monster's skin was too thick. The monster attack the people; two guys died instantly.

"Why you big bastard!" shouted Natsu, gathering his magic into his right arm.

"SEGA#$##!"

"You guys run! I'll take care of this!" shouted Natsu. With a jump, he went towards the monster.

"Fire Dragon's Iron Fist!"

Natsu's attack engulfed the monster. The monster screamed in pain. Its skin started to crack.

The people were shocked to see what they just saw. One of them, a girl, stated, "A Dragon Slayer?!"

"This is it!" Natsu shouted. The monster ran towards Natsu.

"Fire Dragon's Roar!"

The attack engulfed the monster once again; it screamed in pain and collapsed. Natsu looked at the people behind him and smiled.

"You guys ok?"

The people were talking within each other. Natsu still couldn't understand them.

Finally, the girl who spoke earlier came forward.

"Thank you for saving us"

"You can speak my language?! Thank god!"

The girl laughed. "Come on our ship, we want to say thank you to you our own way"

"Um… I'm not sure"

"You have anywhere else to go?" the girl asked.

Natsu looked around. There was nobody there except for them, and the surrounding was just ruins.

"Ok" said Natsu. "I'll come with you"

**-A couple of hours later-**

Natsu was outside on the ship's deck. Once he set foot on the ship, the people celebrated that he saved them. He was given copious amounts of food and drink, and was called as a savior. Although Natsu couldn't understand them, he was happy he was around people.

Natsu was in deep thought; since he was sucked into Endless, he was thrown out into an unknown place, and he doesn't know where Gildarts or Wendy disappeared. However, he remembered that Igneel, his dad, was talking to him.

"Stupid Igneel" murmured Natsu.

"You not inside celebrating with everyone else?" a voice asked Natsu.

He looked back, and it was the girl who invited him to the ship.

"I needed some fresh air. And I can't understand what they're saying"

"Ah… fair enough. To be honest not that many people can understand our language"

"What language is it?"

"It's the ancient language. My people are the only ones who use it everyday; everyone else forgot how to use it"

"I see…. What were you guys arguing about on the beach?"

"There was supposed to be something on that island that would've helped our people from protection. In the end we couldn't find it though"

Silence fell between the two. They were just staring into the horizon for a few minutes. Finally, the girl spoke again.

"Can I ask, who are you and where are you from?" asked the girl.

"I'm Natsu. Im from Symphonia, the ace of Symphonia Phoenix! And yourself?"

"My name's Juvia. Im from the Atlantis tribe"

"Atlantis… tribe?"

"You don't know who we are?"

"No. I've never heard of it before. And where am I?"

"Wait, have you…. Have you seen Endless?"

"Endless!" shouted Natsu. "That thing's the reason why I'm here! I was blown off from Symphonia to here!"

"Um… ok, that explains everything"

"Explains what?" said Natsu.

Juvia pulled a deep breath, and started speaking.

"Everyone who has been touched by Endless suffer these after effects. We call it "Endless poison". I think you're affected by it"

"Why would you say that?"

"Because Symphonia doesn't exist anymore. Endless destroyed it 1000 years ago. Its all ruins now"

"Wait… what?! Symphonia is gone? But… I was there! I saw Endless destroying Symphonia! That was 1000 years ago?!"

Natsu was shocked to hear this. His home destroyed? And 1000 years ago? Impossible!

"I'm sorry, this is the truth", said Juvia. "Symphonia is gone. Even the ruins where we found you was done by Endless, although we don't know exactly how far back in history"

Natsu was holding his head. He couldn't take in the shocking information. Worried, Juvia asked something else.

Where there anyone else with you at the time?"

"Yes. One small girl named Wendy and a guy called Gildarts. Have you heard of them before?"

"Gildarts… THE Gildarts? The legendary Gildarts Clive?! He's still alive?!"

"What?"

"Nevermind" said Juvia. "Sorry, I don't know where they are, but I might know where they will head to. There's a big city called Magnolia. It's where people usually end up finding others. Do you want to come with us?"

Natsu pondered Juvia's proposal. If he can find Gildarts or Wendy, he can ask what is going on.

Suddenly, the ship started to rock violently. Both Natsu and Juvia held onto the decks.

"What's going on?!" shouted Juvia.

"SDGI####!"

"What is it?!" screamed Natsu.

"It's ENDLESS!"

Endless came out of the sea, causing massive waves to hit the ship. Natsu was thrown off the deck.

"Oh god!"

"Natsu!" screamed Juvia. "Water Bubble!"

Natsu was covered in water. However, he was able to breath inside.

"You use magic too?!"

"Water magic's my speciality" smiled Juvia. "Get back on the deck!"

Natsu dashed to get back onto the deck, but Endless moved again, causing massive waves to hit the ship. The ship was thrown away from Natsu's direction.

"Juvia!"

Natsu reached for the deck, but he couldn't make it. Before he realized, he was inside the sea. Luckily, Juvia's magic was still intact. But he was getting drawn into Endless again.

"No, not this time!" shouted Natsu. He gathered magic into his right arm and attacked.

"Fire Dragon's Iron Fist!"

Natsu's attack hit Endless, but suffered no damage. Natsu was getting drawn to Endless.

"Damn it, no!"

Natsu tried to keep his consciousness, but it was too late. He passed out.


	5. Chapter 5 - Garuna Island

Chapter 5: Garuna Island

Natsu was again in a dream like state. However, this time, he was looking back into his past.

Natsu could remember it as though it was yesterday; this was when his mother had the mental breakdown because Igneel disappeared from their lives.

_Mum! Get up, Mum!_

_SHUT UP!_

_No, I won't! Mum, you need to get up and eat!_

_Why can't you follow the simplest orders?!_

_Why can't you do this?!_

_You'll die Mum!_

_I don't care, I don't want to live if he is not around!_

_But mum, what about… me?_

_I DON'T CARE!_

_You're hopeless, I tell you, HOPELESS!_

_You'll never be accepted by anyone!_

"AAAAGH!"

Natsu managed to let out a scream. He realized he was no longer in Endless; he was floating in the sea again.

Still floating in the sea, he lifted his face up towards the sun and closed his eyes. He was trying to oppress that memory back.

To him, Igneel was not a father he could look back at and feel proud; he was one of the best players on the Grand Magic League, but one day he suddenly disappeared from the face of this earth. His mother was heartbroken; so heartbroken, she lost the will to live. She died a year later, leaving Natsu alone. Natsu hated Igneel for this.

"Why am I remembering this again?" murmured Natsu.

He looked around to see if the ship was around. But it was nowhere to be seen. He thought of Juvia, the blue haired girl that saved him.

"I hope she's ok", said Natsu.

Suddenly, he heard a few voices coming over from afar. Curious, he started swimming to where the voices were coming from.

A few minutes later, he saw a beach again. This time, there were no ruins around it.

The people on the beach were wearing funny looking clothes; they were purple from top to bottom, and they all had a strange symbol on their chests. They were performing magic attacks at one another. Natsu recognized it as training for the Grand Magic League; there was no mistake in it. He felt a twinge of excitement; finally, since he was taken away by Endless, there was something that he knew.

He swam fast towards the beach, until he was able to land on shore. The mages that were training stopped for a few moments and stared at Natsu.

"Hey guys!" said Natsu with a smile.

"Who are you?" said someone sharply. From the group, a guy stepped out. Natsu immediately knew he was the boss of the group; he had the aura of a champion.

"My name is Natsu Dragneel. Nice to meet you, um…"

"Gray. Gray Fullbuster"

"Hi Gray. Can you show me how to get to a place called Magnolia?"

"Why are you going there?"

"Why do you want to know?" said Natsu with an irritated tone. "Its my business"

"Is that the attitude of a person asking for directions? Gray smirked.

"Why you—

"Want to fight?" said Gray, getting into a battle formation.

Before Gray can get into his position, however, Natsu was already in Gray's blind spot. Gray froze; he never met a person who could move this fast.

"You're too slow", said Natsu.

With that, BAM! And Gray was punched in the stomach. He flew in the air for a few meters behind, but managed to land onto the ground. He looked up at Natsu and smiled; he hadn't been this excited for a while.

"Damn you're good", said Gray. "How about this?!"

"Ice Make: Floor!"

As Gray punched the sand floor, ice started to form. The ice headed towards Natsu, but Natsu jumped up into the air.

"Ice Make: Lance!"

Dozens of ice lances made my Gray headed straight for Natsu.

"Fire Dragon's Roar!"

Natsu's attack melted Gray's attack in an instant. Gray was shocked; no mage was able to melt his ice so easily.

"How did you do that?!", shouted Gray.

"Easy" said Natsu. He was ready to unleash his attack. "My fire is stronger than your ice"

Natsu gathered his magic together. Gray felt his legs wobble; he could tell this attack couldn't be dodged.

"Ice Make: Wall!"

Gray made a wall of ice for protection. However, it was no use.

"SECRET DRAGON TECHNIQUE: CRIMSON LOTUS: EXPLODING FLAMING BLADE"

Natsu's attack engulfed Gray. Gray screamed in pain, and collapsed onto the sandy beach.

"Gray!" the other mages ran towards him.

"I'm… fine", said Gray, lying down on the sand.

Natsu ran towards him and looked down at the ice wizard.

"You ok?" Natsu asked, holding his hand out.

Gray stared for a second, and grabbed Natsu's hand.

"Yeah. You're strong", said Gray. "I've never been beaten like that before"

"I've had a lot of practice in magic battles" said Natsu. "You'll get to my level in no time"

Gray was a little annoyed by that, but he decided to let it pass. "Magic Battle you say? Which team did you play for?"

"Symphonia Phoenix"

"What?"

"Did I just hear that?"

"Symphonia?"

Natsu looked around to the other mages, looking confused. He quickly remembered about what Juvia told him; he quickly explained.

"Oh… sorry! I'm affected by the… Endless Poison. So I don't know what I'm talking about"

"Ah I see…"

"Damn, sorry to hear that"

"Don't worry, you'll get your memories back in no time"

As soon as Natsu explained, the mages murmured and encouraged him that there is nothing to worry about. But Gray kept staring at Natsu; he could tell Natsu was lying about being affected by the Endless poison, he was telling the truth about Symphonia.

"So…Natsu, was it? You said you wanted to go to Magnolia?"

"Yeah. Do you know how to get there?"

"Yeah. But it will take you ages though. We're on the furthest side of the planet. It'll take two long ship rides to get there"

"What?! Where am I?"

"This place is called Garuna Island" Gray sighed. "If you want to get to Magnolia, you need to get on a ship from the town that goes to Garage Island. From there you can get a ship that sails to Magnolia"

"Wow, that's a long journey" Natsu facepalmed. "Ah well. Which way is it to the town?"

"Its-

"GRAY!" Someone shouted from behind. Gray, startled, looked back. Someone was running towards him.

"We need you at the temple now! The time limit has passed but she's not come out yet!"

"WHAT?!" shouted Gray.

"You have to come now!" screamed the girl. She started running back where she came from.

"Natsu, I will take you to the town. Follow me, but run fast!"

"Ok, but why? Who was that?"

"I'll explain on the way. COME ON!"

With that, Gray started running towards the road. Natsu, confused still, followed him to the town.


	6. Chapter 6 - To The Temple

Chapter 6: To the Temple

Natsu was running with Gray towards the town. He had so many questions to ask.

"Why are you rushing to town? Who was that?! What's going on!?"

But Gray did not answer back. He just kept running towards town. Grumbling, Natsu followed.

10 minutes later, they reached the town of Garuna. Well, it was more like a village than a town; there were more huts than houses, and there were only a few modern buildings standing. Natsu was surprised at how small the so-called town was.

"Ok, so now we're here, I can answer your questions now" said Gray. "I rushed into town because of someone. She's one of the most important people in the village here. Well" he looked down to the ground, "She's one of the most important people in the world"

"Who is she?" Natsu asked.

"She's a Dragon Summoner. Well, not yet anyway. She needs to succeed in creating a bond with the dragon spirit in the temple"

"Wait what? What are you talking about? A Dragon Summoner?"

"Seriously? Are you really affected by the Endless poison, or you really don't know?" Gray said with an irritated tone.

"Why you—"

The two glared for a moment, but Natsu backed off. He didn't want to get into a fight that was meaningless.

"Sorry" Natsu said sheepishly. "Please continue"

Gray looked a bit shocked, but continued nonetheless. "A Dragon Summoner is a mage that summons dragons from the spirit world. It's the most powerful magic there is in Earthlands"

"Earth…lands?"

"It's the name of this world we live in", Gray continued. "Dragon Summoning is the only magic that works against Endless. Dragon Summoners travel around the world, going to the Temple of Dragons and connect to the dragon spirits that are rested there. They're held highly here"

"Ok" Natsu said. "Who was that girl who shouted at you?"

"She's a friend of mine", said Gray. "Including her, and three others, we protect her as her Guardians. We're the ones responsible for her. That's why I ran as fast as I can to here"

"Where's that Dragon Summoner girl? Isn't she out yet?"

"No" said another voice. Natsu and Gray looked around; a girl with scarlet red hair was walking towards them.

"Erza" said Gray.

"Took you long enough" Erza huffed. Natsu instantly thought she was really rude.

"Who is this?" Erza eyed up at Natsu.

"I'm Natsu Dragneel"

"He was washed up on the shore. Think he was affected by Endless Poison"

As soon as Erza heard that, she drew out her sword and slashed at Nastu. Natsu dodged the attack with ease.

"What the hell?! What was that for!?"

"Erza, what-"

"Equip: Heaven's Wheel Armor!"

With a flash of light, Erza equipped a armor on her, called as Heaven's Wheel Armor.

"Erza, stop!" shouted Gray, but Erza did not listen. She attacked Natsu.

"Heaven: Trinity Sword!"

A slash in a delta formation headed towards Natsu.

"Fire Dragon's Roar!"

Natsu's attack hit Erza's in mid-air. In a few seconds, both attacks disappeared.

"He canceled that attack?!" Gray was shocked. No-one has been able to cancel Erza's attack as far as he could remember. Erza was equally shocked as well.

"Well then, how about this?!" Erza was going in to attack again.

"ERZA!"

A shout came from the temple. Erza stopped in her tracks.

"What the hell are you doing?! We don't have time for this!" said the voice angrily.

"S…sorry", said Erza. She dispelled her armor, and stared at Natsu.

"I'm watching you"

"What the hell!? What for?"

"ERZA!" shouted the voice. Erza quickly headed towards the temple.

"What is her problem?!", shouted Natsu.

"Sorry" said Gray. "She's had bad experiences with Endless. She's lost many of her loved ones because of it. Well… everyone has"

"But still…"

"She might have thought you were a monster created from Endless"

"WHAT?!"

"It's happened before. Endless creatures that get cut off from Endless can become any form, including human"

Natsu looked at Gray with disbelief. This Earthlands was defiantly a different world from where he was from.

"Anyway, I need to go to the temple. What are you going to do?"

"um…" Natsu didn't think that far ahead. After a little while, he answered. "I'll follow you"

"Ok, but you can't go into the deep parts of the temple. Only the Great Hall, ok?"

"Fine"

They started to head to the Dragon Temple of Garuna.


	7. Chapter 7 - Meeting the Dragon Summoner

Chapter 7: Meeting the Dragon Summoner

**- Inside the Dragon Temple of Garuna –**

Natsu was awed by the Dragon Temple of Garuna. Statues of Dragons everywhere, looking menacing. And there were 4 statues of people around the Great Hall; three men and one woman.

"Who are they?"

"They are the 4 Grand Dragon Summoners. They are the mages who successfully defeated Endless. From the right, the Great Zeref, the first to defeat Endless, Circe the Sorceress, the second mage to defeat it, Triden the Wizard, the third mage to defeat the beast, and Jude Heartfilia, the fourth. Hearthfilia-sama defeated Endless 10 years ago"

"10 years ago?"

"Yeah. Why do you sound surprised?"

"No… nothing" said Natsu. He was thinking back; the time Igneel disappeared from his life was exactly around the time this Endless was defeated.

_Are they connected?_ Natsu thought.

"You're finally here Gray", said a voice. It was Erza. There was another man standing next to her. He was tall, muscular, and had blonde hair.

"Sorry" said Gray. "What's the situation?"

"Still the same" said the guy. "She's still inside. We have Mirajane waiting for her outside the prayer room, but it's been three days now"

"Oh no…"

"So she's still in there?" asked Natsu. The blonde guy looked down at him.

"Yeah. Who's he?"

"My name's Natsu. You are…?"

"Laxus. Laxus Dreyar"

"Is she still alive?" asked Erza. She looked worried.

"I think so", Laxus said. He looked tough, but he couldn't hide the fear in his eyes. "It's up to the heavens now"

"Wait, you can't help her?!"

"We're not allowed to, it's under the sacred law" said Gray.

Natsu looked at the three. He couldn't believe his eyes and ears.

"So you three are just going to stand there and do nothing?"

"Watch your mouth" said Erza sharply, but Natsu wasn't there to listen.

He ran towards the sacred prayer's room.

"Natsu! You can't go there!" shouted Gray. "The sacred law-"

"FUCK THE LAW!" screamed Natsu. Everyone in the temple was shocked by that statement.

"You all are worried about her, so why aren't you helping!? If she dies that's it, you can never talk to her again!"

And with that, he barged into the sacred area of the temple, towards the prayer room.

**- 30 minutes later – **

Natsu was in pieces. Corner after corner there was a trap hidden; he had to work so hard to get away from that.

"Jesus, what's up with the amount of traps here?!" screamed Natsu.

When he looked up, he saw a passage through. Without thinking, he ran though the passage.

Natsu got out of the exit; it was in a small hall. He looked around; it did seem like it was the prayer's hall.

"Who are you?"

A voice asked Natsu. He looked around; there were two people in the hall.

One person was a girl with white hair and in a long gothic black dress. The other was a guy with a long black coat with a hood on the back. It was the guy who asked Natsu.

"I'm Natsu Dragneel"

"What are you doing here? You're not a Guardian", he guy said, getting himself into a battle position. Natsu put himself into a battle position as well.

"Vince, don't" said the girl.

"Sorry Mira" The guy called Vince lowered his battle stance.

The girl called Mira looked at Natsu, "Sorry, my "friend" is just being protective. But it's true, you shouldn't be here. How did you get here?"

"Well-"

"You are full of surprises, Mr. Dragneel", said a voice behind them. Natsu looked back, it was Gray, Erza and Laxus coming into the room.

"How did you get through all the traps?" asked Laxus with a surprised tone. "Not that many people can get through those traps unharmed"

"It was easy, I've been through worse" huffed Natsu.

"Ok, but-"

Before Laxus could say anything, the prayer room doors opened. Everyone looked up.

Through the doors, a girl came out. She had blonde hair, brown eyes, and had this smile that Natsu was mesmerized with.

_Woh… I'm not going to forget that smile_, Natsu thought.

The girl was trying to walk down the stairs, but she lost her balance. Natsu tried to move fast to help her, but Vince and Mira were faster. They both managed to help the girl up.

"You ok?"

"Don't push yourself, Lucy"

"Thank you, Mirajane-san, Vincent. I'm ok"

She looked down at everyone in the hall. She caught a glimpse of the salmon-haired boy in the hall; she smiled at him. Natsu blushed a little, but kept his composure.

"I did it guys! I'm a Dragon Summoner now!"

From then on, Lucy Heartfilia became Lucy the Dragon Summoner.


	8. Chapter 8 - First encounter with Lucy

Chapter 8: First encounter with Lucy

As soon as Lucy came out of the Temple, the whole village rejoiced.

"We knew you were going to succeed!"

"Lucy-sama, congratulations!"

"Yay, we have a Dragon Summoner from our village!"

The villagers started gathering towards the centre. Natsu was curious.

"What are they waiting for?"

"For Lucy to perform her summoning magic" answered Erza. Natsu looked at her; it was the first time she talked to him in a normal way.

"It's been a while we have had a Dragon Summoner here. Everyone wants to see if it's true"

"I see…"

"And…" Erza looked a little embarrassed. "I'm sorry I attacked you earlier. I jumped to conclusions. My apologizes"

Natsu looked at Erza. He then smiled.

"Don't worry, I'm not bothered by it. Thank you"

Erza looked at Natsu with a bewildered face. She looked away; she could feel she was blushing.

"Um… what's up?" asked Natsu.

"Nothing!" said Erza. But then she smiled, "thank you for accepting my apology"

"It's ok" smiled Natsu. Erza had to look away again; Natsu's smile seemed to make her blush a lot. Laxus raised an eyebrow towards Erza.

"Guys, look!" said Gray. Everyone focused on Lucy. Lucy started to gather her magic; the magic pentagram was forming below her.

"I summon thee; Sky Dragon, Grandeeney!"

The ground shook for a little bit. From the magic pentagram, a dragon came out, causing strong winds. Everyone was doing their best to keep their composure. Natsu was awed by Grandeeney's appearance.

"It's a dragon…"

"Beautiful, isn't she?" said a voice behind him. Natsu looked back; it was Wendy.

"WENDY!" Natsu screamed. Everyone around looked at Natsu. Natsu went in to hug Wendy.

"Where the hell have you been?! What's going on?!"

"I'll explain later, Natsu-san, in private. Right now, its better to focus on her"

"Her?"

Wendy pointed at Lucy. Natsu looked on; Lucy looked drained.

Lucy was about to collapse, when Mirajane was able to hold her.

"You ok? You need to rest now, Lucy"

"Thank you, Mira-san. I'm beat", said Lucy with a weak voice.

"Everyone go back to your houses!" said Vincent. "We'll have a celebration later tonight for the birth of Lucy the Dragon Summoner!"

The entire village roared, and dispersed.

**- Later that night –**

The whole village was celebrating the birth of Lucy the Dragon Summoner. Many people went up to Lucy to talk to her; many of them were wishing her luck and said they were proud. Lucy was smiling and saying thank you to all of them.

Natsu was sitting down a little far away from all the commotion. What Lucy was going through now reminded him of what life was like in Symphonia. It seemed such a long time ago when he was there.

_Will I ever be able to get back?_ Natsu thought sadly.

"Why the sad face?" said a voice. Natsu looked up; Lucy was kneeling down checking his face.

"No… nothing. Sorry" said Natsu sheepishly.

Lucy smiled. "You're Natsu, aren't you?"

"What? How did you know my name?" said Natsu in a surprised tone.

"I asked Gray and Erza. You're the one who barged into the Temple"

"Ye… yeah" said Natsu, scratching the back of his head. "Sorry about that"

"No, it's ok. I was happy to hear it"

"What?" Natsu looked up.

"No-one really does that around here, especially breaking the sacred laws"

"Oh…. Well-"

Suddenly, he was pulled away from Lucy. Natsu looked around; a few young men were pulling him away.

"Hey, let me go!"

"No!" said one of the young men. "You are unworthy to talk to her! You law breaking brat!"

"Guys, stop!" said Lucy, but they won't listen.

"Don't worry Lucy-sama, we will dispose of him!"

Natsu engulfed himself in flames. The young men were shocked.

"I SAID", Natsu screamed, "LET ME GO!"

The fire engulfed the young men; they were blasted away. They all fell onto the ground, groaning in pain.

"Oww"

Natsu heard laughter. Vincent and Mirajane were walking towards him.

"Brilliant Natsu. I have not laughed that much in a while", said Vincent with a smile. Before Natsu could answer, Vincent leaned down to one of the men on the ground.

"Do something like that again in front of Lucy, you won't just have her to answer, you will have everyone else to answer for. You got it?" Vincent whispered in the man's ear. The man's face turned white.

"Isn't that right, Lucy?"

"Yes", said Lucy. She looked down upon him, with coldness in her eyes. It made Natsu feel fear down his spine.

_Wow, she's scary when she wants to be…_

The young men ran away, having fear on their faces.

"Sorry about this", said Lucy.

"Huh? Oh its ok, I'm not bothered," said Natsu. "They should be lucky that I held back"

Lucy giggled at that comment. Natsu smiled; Lucy was quite cute when she giggled.

Vincent and Mirajane saw the conversation between the two, and raised their eyebrows. They looked at each other, and nodded.

"Right, Lucy, you should go now. We've got a long day ahead of us" said Vincent.

Lucy pouted a bit, but understood. "Ok"

Lucy looked at Natsu. "Sorry, have to go"

"It's ok", said Natsu with a smile.

Lucy smiled back, blushing a little.

"Please tell me more about Symphonia when we have time next time"

"What?" Natsu looked at her with a shocked face.

Lucy waved, and went off to her house, followed by Mirajane and her guardians.

Natsu was just standing there. He was shocked that Lucy mentioned Symphonia. Her tone was different from the others; she wanted to know about Symphonia.

"She's one of a kind, isn't she?" asked Vincent.

"Huh? Oh yeah… yeah she is" Natsu said sheepishly.

Vincent smiled. "Get some sleep. We're leaving for Garage Island tomorrow morning. You're going to Magnolia right? Then until then we're traveling together"

"Yeah. Thanks Vincent"

Vincent nodded, and walked off. What Natsu didn't realize that time, was that the people he met today, and Lucy, will change his life forever.


End file.
